Acid enhanced ionic liquid pretreatment of biomass

Acid enhanced ionic liquid pretreatment is a promising method for boosting the yield of sugars produced from purified cellulose. Acid enhancement significantly increases the yields of sugars from the lignocellulosic feedstock switchgrass. The addition of Amberlyst 15, a protic acid resin, to the ionic liquid pretreatment of switchgrass boosted the yield of sugar up to ten times, decreased the amount of cellulase required for saccharification and increased the biocatalytic conversion of switchgrass into free fatty acids 10-fold to 22% of the theoretical yield.